Animal Crossing: New World
The smell of sizzling bacon filled the small room. A teen groaned rolling over in his single bed, “it’s too early.” He pressed his eyes closed in hope he could fall back to sleep but the greasy aroma kept his stomach rumbling. “Fine. I’ll get up! But you owe me one,” the boy said, rubbing his stomach. He tugged on the blanket, that kept the cool breeze from his fan off of him, and he immediately recoiled back under the protection of the covers. He stared at his fan, questioning why he still used one in the middle of January. He reached his naked arm from under covers and flicked the machine off. He slowly crawled out of his bed and approached his closet. He easily picked out his outfit- it was all that was left; a beige hoodie with colours strips on the front, an acid washed fabric vest, cream coloured jeans and navy high tops. He walked out of his room and into the small washroom across the hall. He stared at his reflection in the mirror above the sink as he gurgled down a glass of water and applied gel to his short, brown hair. He spat the water out into the sink and walked down the empty hall. “Zac! Why are you just getting up now?! Your ferry leaves in a few hours! I even made you a special goodbye meal,” an older lady spoke out, her hair was a mix of reds, purples, and black and white. She wore jean overalls that were splattered with paint. “But it’s too late to eat that now, it’s gotten cold,” she sighed tossing the bacon and eggs into the trash. “Next time get up before 9 AM” The boy twitched staring longingly at the trash, “I guess. Sorry Mitch.” He walked to the fridge and pulled out the chocolate milk. He poured himself a glass and drank it, biting into a sugar cookie. The older woman stared at the boy hitting his hand, “it’s way too early for cookies! Young man, you should know better!” “But-” “No buts! I am not your mother!” “Yes Mitch… Sorry,” he sighed putting the cookies away. He couldn’t wait to leave. “I should prolly get going to the docks, don’t want to miss the ferry, and all.” She nodded, “I’ll miss you Zac! You were such a doll to live with.” She wiped a fake tear from her eye and unlocked the door for the teen. “Have fun being in an intern in Falsetto! I’m sure you’ll do great!” Zac hugged Mitch as he walked out of the door, and down the street. He kept walking until he was at the bus stop, behind him a street sign with the words ‘chimo pl’. He glanced away from it, he wouldn’t be coming back here any time soon. He only moved here in the first place for school, and that he was done with that, and he had a real job, he could leave. The letter came only a few days after he turned nineteen. It offered him a position to intern in Falsetto. Apparently Falsetto was a small town on the mainland, but it was better than the alternative. Zac was nineteen, he should have the right to eat cookies whenever he wanted to- at least that’s what he told himself. The bus pulled up, and Zac got on, swiping his pass against the scanner and sat down. He didn’t know anyone else on the bus and so he turned his attention to his phone. He had been messaging one of the townspeople in Falsetto. Her name was Freya and from what Zac gathered she seemed like the type of girl he liked. Tortimer, the person who sent Zac the letter in the first place had recommended he get to know the townspeople before he arrived, but he failed to mention any of their names. Zac was glad that Freya took it upon herself to contact Zac to let him know that everyone in Falsetto were eager to meet the new intern. She even sent him a picture of pink-tinted wolf, which he could only assume was what she chose to sleep with at night. The bus came to a stop at the pier and Zac got off. He walked along the wooden pathway until he reached the ship that would take him to his new life. He showed the workers his ticket and he was let onto the ferry. In a few hours he would be taking up his official position as Intern in Falsetto. “Hey! Where are you headed?” A voice called out, right when Zac took a seat on the deck of the ferry. He turned around to see a human-sized cat wearing a sweater vest, a smile plastered on its face. “Huh? Wha-” Zac fumbled with his words before blacking out. “Was it something I said?”